Our Mutual Friend

A satiric masterpiece about the allure and peril of money, Our Mutual Friend revolves around the inheritance of a dust-heap where the rich throw their trash. When the body of John Harmon, the dust-heap’s expected heir, is found in the Thames, fortunes change hands surprisingly, raising to new heights “Noddy” Boffin, a low-born but kindly clerk who becomes “the Golden Dustman.” Charles Dickens’s last complete novel, Our Mutual Friend encompasses the great themes of his earlier works: the pretensions of the nouveaux riches, the ingenuousness of the aspiring poor, and the unfailing power of wealth to corrupt all who crave it. With its flavorful cast of characters and numerous subplots, Our Mutual Friend is one of Dickens’s most complex—and satisfying—novels.(P) JimCin Recordings

Reseñas de la Crítica

“The fact that Dickens is always thought of as a caricaturist, although he was constantly trying to be something else, is perhaps the surest mark of his genius.” —George Orwell

Too much of a good thing is wonderful!

If you are a Dickens fan or if you just think humans are interesting and sometimes strange, hear this book. The vocal presentation is nearly perfect, but it is the STORY and the characters that will hook the reader hopelessly. Mystery and manipulation are here, idiosyncracity and quirky folks are here, the human circus of performers and watchers are here. In this last completed Dickens novel, there is true enjoyment to be found in every chapter, on every page. While listening in the car, this reviewer is mesmerized, totally attentive despite the occasional pedestrian who has to jump aside. My only regret is that the book, a brief 800 pages, and the audio are not longer.

Great book almost spoiled

Our Mutual Friend is Dickens's last completed novel. It is a good story but unfortunately the narrator does not do a good job reading. His tone is not pleasing to listen to, his pace is too slow and his characterizations are not effective. The story is worthy of a better reading. I don't recommend you avoid this because of the bad narration. The story is worth hearing.

If you have the option, I recommend listening to this at a speed faster than normal. I found that technique softens the narrator's presentation.

Well worth your time

After reading all the preceding reviews, I was nearly deterred from trying this title, but I'm truly glad I decided to find out for myself. I agree that the narration isn't as good as it could be, but the book is so entertaining that you forget about the narrator's flaws after a while. It really is worthwhile to give it a listen.

The usual Dickens - wonderful!

I listened to this book ( same reader ) on cassetes before I discovered Audible. Trying to juggle more than twenty cassettes on the car seat was quite an experience. But the book made it all worth it. In the future, though, I'm glad to say my tiny little Otis will take the place of all those cassetes. Anyway - No one can create charactors like Dickens - not then and not now. A wonderful book and a very good reading.

Worth the time

I found this book hard going at first, what with all of the characters and plots to follow. I almost gave up during the first hour. However, since I'd already paid for it I decided to stick with it a while longer. My patience was rewarded. Once I got involved, I could scarcely put it down. The narrator has been criticized in other reviews. I agree he was far from optimal, but I didn't think he was so terrible. It was a little odd to have an American reading so English a novel and he did mispronounce English place names, but it couldn't ruin the book for me. After my happy experience with this novel, I've decided to dig into some of Dickens other work.